Reasons for getting involved with music and instruments

[hyperbolica]

I've talked to people who consider themselves artists. I've talked to people who don't see any art in their professional playing - it's all about technical performance and interpretation. There have been times when I was most interested in the physical feel of playing. Some people seem more interested in the hardware, from a technician or engineering point of view. Some are more interested in the social aspect. I've known people more interested in the history of music or the beauty of the performed music.

Everyone has a different motivation, and each reason is valid.

I personally like the execution, hardware and performing the written music. There is a bit of art to it, but I'm just performing the actual art which was writing of the original work. Just like actors perform written scripts with some latitude in interpretation.

Why do you do what you do?

[ghmerrill]

I've talked to people who don't see any art in their professional playing - it's all about technical performance and interpretation.

So there's no art in "technical performance and interpretation"? I guess I'm skeptical of that view of "art". Likewise, concerning the idea that actors aren't "artists" because they only "perform written scripts". To me, it seems pretty clear that some are artists, and some are just pretentious duds.

[BGuttman]

I like the fitting in with the ensemble part. If you are a melody hound, trombone is not your instrument; we get to play the harmony more often than not. But I won't turn down a chance to play a solo with the band.

I had a lot of fun playing in an amateur orchestra that was really short on wind players, giving me the opportunity to play 1st Horn in the Handel Water Music arranged by Harty, 2nd Bassoon in Beethoven's 7th Symphony, and the bassoon part in Die Fledermaus (including that great solo opening the last act). Playing other parts than trombone lets me see how the other players fit into the ensemble as well. I like to play behind a chorus, especially when doubling the alto voices on alto trombone.

A good trombone voice can be a real chameleon and blend with all kinds of ensembles in all kinds of roles. This is what kept me interested.

[ghmerrill]

we get to play the harmony more often than not.

Harmony? It seems to me I've been playing a lot of percussion lately -- except for the New Year's gig last night when I was playing some bass guitar.

[Burgerbob]

I'm lucky enough to love many aspects of the instrument, something I realize not everyone is blessed with.

I love the physical act of playing (when things are going well, which they have been lately).

I like the things themselves, the instruments and associated bits. This is the most expensive love, and probably the best to do without!

But most of all, the feeling of playing in a very good ensemble of any size, knowing that everyone around you is doing their utmost to listen and play well, hearing someone instantly adjust to match a style or pitch- that collective act is like a drug for me. It's why covid was so tough, just playing by myself.

[ghmerrill]

I don't care for playing in large ensembles. I played (saxophone) in "band" from 6th grade through graduating from college, and played flute in orchestra in college (and doubled on it in a jazz band). Played in community (concert) bands since the age of 14 (sax in earlier years, tuba for 20 years much later). I've liked playing (tuba) in brass quintets, but I don't like the larger bands with eight tubas or ten trombones, etc. Tuba Christmas with a group of about 200 was fun -- once. I'm tired of community concert bands now, and just don't enjoy them. But I'm loving going back to my middle school routes in a "community jazz orchestra", playing bass trombone. It's just SO much fun -- though also SO much work currently, to come back up to speed on that stuff, and on a different instrument. The "collective act" happens more, and is easier to perceive, in the smaller ensembles.

[tbdana]

But most of all, the feeling of playing in a very good ensemble of any size, knowing that everyone around you is doing their utmost to listen and play well, hearing someone instantly adjust to match a style or pitch- that collective act is like a drug for me. It's why covid was so tough, just playing by myself.

For me, this is it. The best thing ever. There is no drug and no sex as good as sitting in a group of great players all playing really together at a very high level. And there’s no playing easier than that, either.

As for “art,” vs “craft,” I enjoy excellent craft, and I think art flows from that as a foundation. Any damn fool can say he’s “playing from the heart” and call it art. But my view of art is that it rests on a foundation of craft so strong that the craft aspect is forgotten and a gestalt occurs.

[LeTromboniste]

But most of all, the feeling of playing in a very good ensemble of any size, knowing that everyone around you is doing their utmost to listen and play well, hearing someone instantly adjust to match a style or pitch- that collective act is like a drug for me. It's why covid was so tough, just playing by myself.

For me, this is it. The best thing ever. There is no drug and no sex as good as sitting in a group of great players all playing really together at a very high level. And there’s no playing easier than that, either.

As for “art,” vs “craft,” I enjoy excellent craft, and I think art flows from that as a foundation. Any damn fool can say he’s “playing from the heart” and call it art. But my view of art is that it rests on a foundation of craft so strong that the craft aspect is forgotten and a gestalt occurs.

What Dana and Aidan wrote!


In terms of art vs craft, I differ slightly from Dana's perspective. For me it's important to see my journey as a never-completed quest to improve both my craft and my art. Having artistic/musical ideas is not innate, it comes from training, mindset and maybe most importantly, habit. And I do agree those ideas often flow from having the sufficient skill to execute them, that "craft" allows "art" to happen that I might not have even been able to imagine otherwise. Nonetheless, the most stimulating thing for me is to constantly try to refine my musical ideas and/or find or explore new ones, even when that requires imagining beyond what my craft allows, which then motivates my acquiring the skill to express those ideas. Maybe it's simply that my craft just isn't good enough yet to do like Dana says and have "foundation of craft so strong that the craft aspect is forgotten and a gestalt occurs", but my instinct and my hope is that there actually might be no limit to how much more subtle and refined my ideas can get, and how much better my craft can and must be in order to express them fully.

[hyperbolica]

So there's no art in "technical performance and interpretation"? I guess I'm skeptical of that view of "art"....

I know a tbone professor at a major university who plays in several regional orchestras and is first call in this area. Hes a great player and a smart guy. Any trombone player would envy his position and accomplishments.

He has said to me there is no art in what he does. He feels more like a mechanical technician. I assume this is in reference to the teaching and orchestral aspects of playing. I think I get what he's saying, but it's a little disillusioning.

[imsevimse]

For me it is a mix off different reasons. First I like music. I like to sing and I just like to play trombone in general. It's what I've done since I was 12. I can't stop now, its my life. My grandfather was a musiscian so I've heard music played around the house from early on in closeup and I think that helped my intersest a lot. My grandfather became my role model and from him I inherited a small collection of old Swedish valved brass instruments when I was 19.

On trombone music has turned out to be mostly jazz so I'm now a member in four bigbands where I play 1:st in two and 2:nd in one and bass trombone in one. A good mix. The rep is different.

One band is the Johan Stengård Big Band and we have now done 167 concerts with seated audience. Here I'm on second. That band consists of very good musiscians and plays mostly Sinatra/Basie stuff. This is where I charge my batteries. This is performing and getting appreciation.

One band plays music of the late George Graham World Piece Orchestra and there I get an opportunity to play some charts originally written for Alex Iles, and also a lot of original arrangements by Tom Kubics. I'm on first in that band so its a challange. A nice band too and good Swedish "fika" between sessions. We've done some concerts also with the band.

Third band is a Basie band were we mostly play Sammy Nestico arrangengements. We have no conductor and consists mostly of retired pros. It's a kick start band. Here I play bass trombone. Just joy!

Finally the last band plays some original music from Swedish arrangers and also some traditional Clayton Hamilton Big Band arrangements as well as more modern big band arrangenents. Here we have a conductor who also arranges a lot of the music we play. A lot to play every evening.

Before this last band starts their reheasals the trombonesection always meet and eat a dinnar at a restaurant. We sit there for one and a half hour. That's a very nice habit. That's fun and socializing.

Finally I play at least an hour of solo classical music a day at home. I play my Bach Cello Suites, and I to try my best to make up for a Cello. I also play a lot of etudes and other original solo repertoire for trombone along with minus one records. If I' got the time I play a few Aebersolds too. To me this is where I develop as a player.

I collect trombones. Just for the joy to play and learn them. In the end of a day I often switch to some of the less used ones. It's nice to be able to compare trombones and to play the horns that my heroes played. It has deepened my interest and makes me want practice more.

I like to add some trumpet, french horn and tuba playing, hopefully a little of it every day. I want to be able to play anything, doesn't need to be advanced but it needs to be with quality. Good sound, intonation and hopefully sometime at level so I can sit in a community orchestra.

Of course I love to listen to music too and I have a great LP collection.

/Tom

[Finetales]

There is a particular energy in a space, when the musicians and the audience are both firing on all cylinders and on the same wavelength, that cannot be described in words. Even in a professional group playing for packed crowds, it doesn't happen all the time, or even often. It only happens when everything is just right for the moment.

That is the best feeling in the whole world, and that's what I chase every time I pick up a horn or go to a show.

That's the pinnacle, but there's more to it than that of course. Music and harmony and the emotions they convey are my greatest passion in life, and so the natural choice was to make it my career so I could experience it all the time. I also just really enjoy the physical act of playing a brass instrument (ANY brass instrument!) and extracting beauty out of a metal tube. Any day I get to play a brass instrument is a good day.

I also really love the process of recording. I love the feeling of nailing a take, and hearing the final result slowly take shape with each new stem. Going into the booth after finishing all the parts and hearing something gorgeous is another one of my favorite things.

And of course, I also love the gear. I love giving forgotten/obsolete instruments new life and preserving their existence by performing and recording on them, and writing about them online.

[BrassSection]

Although I enjoy great music, and being part of a group making great music, i just plain enjoy playing brass horns. Played grandson’s high school band trumpet music with him during Covid lockdowns, to keep both of our chops in shape. Great feeling to be playing with family. Ditto Christmas band concert this year. My first band concert in 53 years. Great group of volunteer musicians, many professional, coming together for a 60+ member band. The smile on the audience faces and the conductor’s face after the last note of the Halleujah Chorus made it all worthwhile. Grandson and daughter being in the band with me was icing on the cake.

Putting together small brass ensembles for church was fun…even with having to play the trumpet part on my trombone to show a rusty trumpet player how the song went, while a rusty trombone player was complaining “There’s something wrong with the slide positions!” (Band director who was part of the ensemble tried it out, said “It’s fine”.) Meantime in one ensemble the tuba pro and the trumpet player, me, traded horns for a Christmas ensemble. Were these top notch performances? Nope. Did we have fun? Yep. Did the congregation enjoy and appreciate them? Yes.

At times it’s great just to sit back and enjoy the local Brass Group. All top notch musicians, horn player and a trombone player arrange every piece they play. Always a great concert!